Avalanche forecast

Mt Hood

Northwest Avalanche Center
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Avalanche danger

Thu
Alpine
2 · Moderate
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
1 · Low
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Out of date — this forecast expired 3 years ago. You’re viewing past conditions, not the current bulletin.

Highlights

Consider steering around steep wind drifted slopes at mid and upper elevations. These wind drifted slabs could pack a punch and be consequential if triggered. As the day heats up, think about moving off solar slopes if you notice signs such as rollerballs and pinwheels. 

 

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible
    Size
    1.5–2.5

    You’ll have to navigate around two different types of wind slabs on Wednesday. The first is the shallow, fresh ones that may form after a few inches of new snow accompanied by strong winds. These slabs should generally be soft and shallow.  The other type of wind slab that should certainly be on your radar is the older, hard (1F-P hard) slabs that formed during our stormy period on Monday (3/13). These slabs will likely be harder to trigger, but will pack a punch and could be quite consequential if caught. I’d give these slabs a good buffer for a couple more days. 

     

    These slabs will be lurking in specific areas such as the downwind side of ridges, under cornices, below cliff bands, and near the top of chutes/couloirs. Fortunately, this is an easy avalanche problem to navigate around. You can simply use visual clues to help you identify slopes of concern. Look for active loading or slopes that appear textured and fat. Pillow-like slabs or ripples at the snow surface all indicate a possible wind loaded feature. As always, pump the brakes if you notice shooting cracks or hear snow that sounds hollow like a drum.

    (3/14/2023)

    This was an explosive triggered hard slab that broke 3-5 ft deep in a heavily loaded spot on Tuesday. The meadows patrol found these types of slabs to be stubborn, isolated,  but clearly quite large once triggered. 

    NE aspect, 7200 ft. 

    Photo: Ben Ticknor

  • Loose Wet

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible
    Size
    1–1.5

    Pretty straightforward here… the sun will make an appearance and start making the snow surface wet and weak on solar slopes. Consider steering around steep solars if you notice rollerballs and pinwheels. These are often indicators telling you that the snow surface is getting weak and that loose wet avalanches may soon follow. This problem will likely be a more prominent at those mid-elevations that still hold soft snow at the surface. These should be small, but still consider the consequence if they push you into a terrain trap such as a creek or a gully bottom. 

    Consider moving to shadier slopes if you notice signs like this. 

    Photo: Joe Dellaporta

Avalanche Discussion

The past two days have offered all the ingredients( new snow, strong winds, and long duration of wind speeds) needed for some large wind drifted slabs to form. This was verified on Tuesday when the Mt Hood Meadows Pro Patrol triggered a large hard slab that broke 2-5 ft deep in some of their alpine terrain ( NE aspect, 7200 ft). They also triggered smaller slabs that broke 4-6 inches in drifted snow in some of their more sheltered locations.  

If I were you, I would give these heavily drifted areas a couple more days before committing to steeper features. Hard slabs will often break above you and surprise many people, including professionals. The best practice is to give these things time to heal and increase your margins from them while they linger. 

If you get out let us know what you see by submitting a public observation!

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